1. Field
The following description relates to a touch panel, and more particularly to a touch panel that supports various input methods and a touch screen having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a touch screen refers to a device in which an input detection means is integrated into a display means. A touch screen may include a display unit, such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), as well as a touch panel provided on such a display unit.
Such a touch screen receives a user's input through a screen touch. For example, the touch screen may recognize a character or a position displayed on a screen that is touched by the finger tip of a user or the tip of an object such as a stylus, without the use of a mechanical keypad.
Although not excellent in precision, touch screens are widely used as an information display device in a place frequently visited by people, for example, as in a public place like a subway station, a department store or a bank, due to the simplicity of operation of such a device. The touch screens are not only frequently applied to counter terminals in various stores, but also widely employed recently in portable terminals, such as mobile phones, DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) receivers, and car navigation systems.
The touch panels (or touch screens) are classified into a resistive overlay type, a capacitive type, a surface acoustic wave type, an infrared beam type, etc. At present, capacitive-type touch panels are most widely used.
However, conventional capacitive-type touch screens have a problem in that they are operated only when they are touched by a conductor, such as a human finger. Conventional capacitive-type touch screens do not sense the input when they are touched by a nonconductor object. This may cause inconveniences to a user due to the limited methods of input.